Strand-guide for braiding-machines



A..PET ERSEN. v STRAND GULDE FOR BRAIDING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 3% 1920- Patented Aug. 2,1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

aiiys.

A. PETERSEN.

STRAND cum FOR BRAIDING MACHINES.

AFPLlCATlON HLED JULY 30 I920.

Ptented Aug. 2, 1921;

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- 4.

mama STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ANKER PETERSEN, OF WINTHROP, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN WIRE- MOLD COMPANY, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT STRAND-GUIDE FOR BRAIDING-MAOI-IINES.

1,386,071. Specification of Letters Patent. Patented A 1921 Application filed July so, 1920.

To all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANKER PETERSEN, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Winthrop, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Strand-Guides for Braiding-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in braiding machines andparticularly to that type in which two series of thread carriers are revolved in relatively opposite directions one within the other and in which strand carrier levers are employed for guiding the strands of the outer series alternately above and below. the carriers of the inner series. Such a mechanism is disclosed in the patent to Petersen 1,105,452, July 28, 1914. In said patent the strand carrying lever comprises a substantially rigid frame provided atits free extremity with a thread guide over which the thread passes on its way to the braiding point. In passing to the braiding pointthe thread passes between the driven roll of the thread carrier and the two driving rolls by which the thread carrier is actuated, such an arrangement of rolls being clearly indicated in Figure 3 of the patent referred to. As the thread passes between said rolls it is caused to move to a certain extent aboveand below its normal position as determined by the braiding point and the position of the strand carrying lever at that instant. As the strand at this time is under tension, such movement tends to rupture the thread if the latter be weak orof small size, the relatively rigid strand carrier resisting any movement of the thread such as would provide ,slack at this time.

An object of this invention is to provide a strand carrier of such construction that when the thread is subjected to unusual strain, such as above pointed out, it maybe slackened slightly to avoid breakage of the same. To this end in accordance with the present invention it is proposed to provide a strand carrier havin r the thread guiding portion thereof ,of suficiently flexible construction to permit it to give slightly upon undue tension in the strand, whereby to prevent breakage of the latter. WIn machines of the above character it is desired that the strand carriers occupy as little space as possible in order to keep down the diameter of the rotating machine parts,

Serial No. 400,171.

andit is furthermore desirable that such strand carriers be accurately moved and without any looseness or back-lash in their oscillation.

A further object of the invention is to provlde strand carriers of a form such that they may be nested closely between the rotary frame and the cam cylinder whereby they are actuated, and furthermore to provlde a cam of such form that the carriers may be accurately moved throughout the extent of their swing. To this'end it is surlicient to provide strand carriers of curved form which when in horizontal position shall lie substantiallyparallel to the cam cylinder and the rotating framewithin the same, and to provide acam slot, the depth of which shall vary in accordance with the path of movement of the cam follower carried by the strand carryin lever throughout the path of movement of the same.

One mode of carrying into effect the above obj ectshas been illustrated in the accompany; modrawings in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of such portion of a braiding machine of the class described as serves to illustrate the application thereto of a strand carrying lever of the form forming the subject matter of this invention;

Fig. 2 is an elevation fro'mthe inside of of the cam cylindershown in Fig. l, the pivot pin for the strand carrier being shown in section; i

Fig. 3 is a radial cross section through the rotating frame and the-cam cylinder and through the axis of the cam follower mounted upon the strand carrier;

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic cross-section through the cam cylindertaken at the lowermost point of the 5 illustrating the'variation in. depthof the can? groove at dilferentpoints in the same; ant a r Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the means-for driving a braiding carrier of the'inner series andshowing the. limits of deflection of the outer thread as it passes between-the drive rolls.-

' 1 is the rotating frame upon which the outer set of strand carriers are mounted, and 2 is the relatively fixed cam cylinder surrounding said frame, saidj'cam cylinder ,being provided with mam groove 3. A is a bracket secured to the outer wall of the frame 1 by means'of screws 5, or in' any cam groove therein and other suitable manner, said bracket having a radially extending portion 6 to the outer face of which is pivoted, by means of a radially extending screw 7, a strand carry ng lever 8. As will be noted from inspection of Fig. 1, this strand lever, when in the position there shown, extends throughout its length substantially parallel to the inner wall of the cam cylinder 2 and to the outer wall of the frame member 1, and thus occupies littlespace between said elements.

' The lever member 8 is of relatively rig d construction and at its outer end is bifurcated to form a pair of opposed arms 9-10. Secured in the respective arms in any desired manner, as by means of socket openlngs formed in said arms, .are legs 11-12 of a wire extension of hair-pin like form, said extension. being of substantial length as compared with the lengthof the member 8 and having at. its closed outer extremity a thread guiding ortion '13. This .wire extension is of resilient material, preferably spring steel wire, and is thus adapted to yield ina radial direction upon abnormal strain. upon the strand passing thereover.

' At the point 14 is provided a cam follower a said follower being provided with upper and lower curved surfaces 16 -17 respectively, 1 and with flat ends, such follower being in general of lenticular outline. The cam follower as thus constructed is found tobe very desirable as it gives larger wearing surfaces, than doesa, roll and there. is less likelihood of the parts becomingloose in use. As will be-clear from inspection of Figs. 1 and 3, the curved form of the strand carrying lever '8 together with the radial pivoting ofthe same causes the cam follower to move in an arcuate path about acenter lying in the horizontal plane of said pivot. Thedepthwof such; a groove if uniform would necessarily be so determined as to accommodate the cam follower in passing through the horizontal plane of the pivot. Such depth is, however, unnecessary at other parts of the travel of thefollower and to secure the best. results and to provide aclose fit of the partsthroughout the entire travel of the cam follower the inner walls of the cam groovearev formed on acurve corresponding to the path. in'spacei of the cam follower. As illustrated in Fig. 4:, this groove will be of greatest depth at the portions 18 atwhich the groove crosses the hori-' zontal plane passing through the pivot 7 and will be ofleast depth at points 19-20,

for example wherein the cam groove is most remote from said plane. With this arrange ment thecam follower may within. the groove throughout 7, its entire course of travel andany looseness or backlash between the interengaging parts is to a very large extent obviated. v V

In Fig. 5 the .di tance betweenlinesa -y straight line as it passes over the rolls be fully seated indicate diagrammatically the amount which the thread is caused to deflect out of a .a-1-b and under roll '0. Such deflection, if the thread is held under rigid tension, must either break or stretch the thread, either of which is disastrous to the proper operation of the machine. As above pointed out the strand guide, constructed as herein shown with a flexible end serves to avoid such stretching or breaking of the yarn in a highly satisfactory manner;

I claim:

1. A braiding machine comprising a composite thread lever having rigid and flexible portions, the flexible portion being of substantial length as compared With the rigid portion and. extending beyond the free extremity of the latter, said flexible portion having a thread guide adjacent its extremity, pivotal means tion of the lever, and acam follower adiacent one end of said rigid portion.

2. In a braiding machine, athread lever comprising an elongated, relatively rigid supporting element pivotally supported adjacent one extremity, and a'flexible extension of'hair-pin form'having its legs secured to said element adjacent its free extremity.

3, In combination in a braiding machine, athread lever comprising, a pivotally supported, relatively rigid member, said member being bifurcated at its free extremity to provide spaced arms, and a flexible'extension of hair-pin form having its legs secured to said respective arms and provided with a thread guide at its closed extremity.

' 4:. In a braiding machine, in combination, a cam carrier having a cam groove therein, and a cam follower. movable along said groove, said groove having elements of one of. its walls curved in directions substantially at right angles to each other,

In a braiding machine, a cylindrical cam carrier, a cam groove therein, and a cam follower movable along said groove, said groove having one of its walls, curved in directions both axial and radial of said cylinder. 7 M i 6. In a braiding machine incombination, a cylindrical cam carrier having a cam groove in its circumferentialsurface, and a cam follower movablealong said groove, said groove varying in depth in a radial direction at; successive portions of its length.

1,7..In a braiding machine in combination, camcylinder having a cam groove in its inner circumferential wall, a cam follower movable in said :groove, saidgroove having portions thereof lying adjacent the upper and lower bases of said cylinder, said groove being of less axial-depth atsaid portions than at those ,parts thereof intermediate said portions. 1

engaging the rigid pora cam cylinder having a continuous cam groove therein provided with upper and lower portions, a cam follower, a pivoted lever supporting said follower, and a radially extending pivot pin for said lever, said pin being fixed in a plane substantially midway between said upper and lower portions of the groove, the inner wall of said groove being curved from point to point in its length about a center located in said plane.

9. In a braiding machine, in combination, a cam cylinder provided with an internal cam groove having upper and lower portions and intermediate connecting portions, a curved lever member pivoted to swing about an axis lying in a plane intersecting said intermediate portions, a cam follower mounted adjacent the free extremity of said lever member, said cam groove being deeper at its upper and lower portions whereby to accommodate the cam follower in its oscillation about its pivotal support.

10. In a braiding machine of the class described, in combination a cam cylinder provided with a cam groove upon its inner wall, a lever member mounted to swing inside said cylinder about a substantially radial pivot and a cam follower pivotally mounted upon said lever member and engaging within said groove, said lever member, at one position of its arc of oscillation extending substantially concentric with the inner surface of the cylinder. 7

11. In a braiding machine of the class described, in combination a cam cylinder having a cam groove in its inner wall, a lever member pivoted to swing about a substantially radial pivot said pivot lying in a plane intersecting said cylinder intermediate its bases, and a cam follower mounted on said lever member, said lever member being so curved that when its axis lies in said plane the lever member is substantially concentric with the inner wall of said cylinder.

Signed by me at Boston, Massachusetts, this 26th day of July, 1920.

ANKER PETERSEN." 

